Noah

I am not a praying man. When Alex got the call that Sam had given the address, I prayed. I prayed that Lola was still alive. I prayed that she wasn’t too badly hurt and that she would still able to be an active mother to her kids. I wanted to go with them when they were called, but they insisted that I would only get in their way. Alex tortured Sam and I hated to hear her screams. She knew I was there and she would call out for me to help her when the pain became too much.

Working with the mob had its disadvantages. You had to prove yourself to them. They only trust you if they have information on you. Or at least that’s the way the Delucas work. Once Lola was found, Alex called me to advise that I needed to do my part. I went to where they kept Sam and I pulled out the loaded gun that Frank had left for me. Sam’s eyes widened when she saw it was me coming into the room. She looked relieved to see me and took a deep breath. I slowly approached her and pulled out the gun. I saw one tear fall down her cheek before I shot her twice in the head.

I thought I would cry or get sick after killing her. I hadn’t felt anything but a little relief. I had killed the woman that killed my only brother. Sam pressured me for months to find Nick. She knew we believed he was alive knowing that she had already sealed his fate.

The gun had felt so heavy in my hand, but I remembered the last thing that Frank told me was not to leave the fucking gun. I walked out and sent a message to Thomas that the deal had been done. I can’t remember the exact words I used, but fuck it, I just killed the woman that I thought of as my sister for years. Alex assured me that once she was dead, Thomas would get rid of her body. The only request I had made was that she wouldn’t be put anywhere near Nick. I wanted him to rest in peace.

When I finally got back to the safehouse everyone was rushed to go the hospital. I noticed Adele wasn’t rushing anywhere and she said that someone needed to stay with the kids. I must have been in shock because I volunteered to babysit them, so she could go see Lola.

Now that everyone as gone, I play a few rounds of hide and seek with the kids, in which I only pretending to look for them. After the last round, I let them know it’s now bedtime. I finally have them tucked away and the house is quiet, when, suddenly, I hear a car pull up. The front door slowly opens, and I am face to face with Alexis.

I take a deep breath at the sight of her. She is more beautiful than I remember. Her eyes widen in shock as we finally stand there staring at each other. I slowly walk towards her as she looks me over. I softly cup her face in both hands and pull her tightly against me. I lower my lips to hers and for the first time in months, I feel as if I am home.

Alexis whispers that she can’t believe I am here. Our happy reunion quickly changes as she starts to question me on what I was doing with Thomas and Oliver. I close my eyes and pull away from her before telling her that I had no choice but to make a deal with the devil. Alexis and I have both have had the people closest to us lie to us. The last thing I will do is lie to her. I pull her over to the sofa and once she’s seated I tell her everything. It’s not easy telling her that I had to trick Sam to get her back to Chicago and that I knew she was being tortured daily. I sat by silently while I listened to her screams and her calling out to me. Alexis cringes and turns away from me while I describe the sounds and smells that I endured. I explain to her how I managed to co-exist with Frank, Alex, Oliver, and even Thomas. I don’t think I will have to avoid Chicago anymore, which is a relief because I don’t think I can stay away from her. When Alexis’ beautiful dark eyes stare into mine, she asks me the one question I was afraid to answer. She asked me if I knew when Sam would be released and if she’ll still cause me problems in Boston.

I lean back and run my hand through my beard. I turn towards her refusing to hide the truth.

“Sam is dead,” I whisper, and her eyes widen.

Alexis starts asking more questions. She wanted to know who, what, when, and why. I stare at her remembering when I felt like a normal person. I was a normal person before I pulled the trigger. I stare into her eyes and explain that I had no other choice but to kill Sam. It had to be done and her brothers insisted that I had to be the one to do it. I had to prove to them that I could be trusted. I had to make a fucking sacrifice and now I must trust them not to turn their backs on me. Months ago, I hated every one of them. Hell, I wanted to kill Alex and Frank. I stood in the alley with a gun and waited for them. Today, I killed Sam because they instructed me to do so. They could have easily killed her, but they didn’t trust that I wouldn’t go to the cops. If I try to take them down, they know I’ll go down with them. I swallow realizing that I am no better than any of them.

I feel a warm hand on my face and I glance at Alexis. She gives me a gentle smile and nods, still accepting me even though I am now a cold-blooded killer.